Ming Jia Korean Food

There were quite a number of Korean eating places in Bukit Timah area and Ming Jia is one of them which served true blue Korean food. Tucked away at one far end of Bukit Timah Plaza, Ming Jia stall is manned by a Korean lady together with 3 other helpers.

Ming Jia Korean Food

There was a communication gap between the Korean Auntie when I tried ordering the dishes, luckily one of the helpers who seemed to be a local helped me on my orders. Ming Jia Korean Food is divided into two section, one will be the kitchen and a few tables and the unit directly opposite are a shop space catered for dining.

The korean Lady helmed the kitchen and was really quick on the orders. Tofu Seafood Set was served within 5 minutes with a side of our choice.

Tofu Soup Set - $9

Set Meal is pretty authentic whereby the food were served in traditional stone pot and stainless steel cutleries were used. Tofu soup was super tasty with ingredients like, baby shrimps, yellow onions, squid, tofu, needle mushrooms etc.

Toufu Soup

The spicy toufu as side was kept in the fridge for sometime and was rather cooling. Spicy level was very low and taste was rather standard like any other typical korean eating places.

Sides

Due to that Ming Jia is nearing to end business day, the amount of seafood they had was running out. Therefore the ingredients maybe a little lesser over here. There are two Koreans Pancake to choose from, the tradtional Kimchi Pancake or seafood pancake. Amazed by her speed of serving, the Korean Lady had fixed our hungry stomachs in a faster way (we are late for dinner), luckily. Pancake was not too oily and was crispy at the edge.

Seafood Pancake - $8

The sizzling stone pot dish me at tastebuds. The sweet savoury broth together with thin slices of pork was insatiable. Vermicelli, pork and onions were used. Yummy!

Ddukbaegi Bugolgi - $9

Becareful! It's burning hot!

Sizzling

The only pet peeve I had over in Ming Jia Korean Food was that we were never able to enjoy a full Korean meal as the type of rice use was similar to what we have been eating daily (Thai Rice) instead of the usual Korean rice. Other than that, all things were well in place.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Ming Jia Korean Food
Location: Bukit Timah Plaza, 1 Jalan Anak Bukit #B1-07 Singapore 588996

Goodwood Park Hotel - Coffee Lounge

When people talks about Goodwood Park Hotel, it naturally links to me their Durian. Having heard of their popularity in Durians pastry, I have never gotten a chance to enjoy such. I guess it's never too late to give them a try now. Better late than never!

Goodwork Park Hotel

Walking up the red carpet into the lobby, I could even smell the potent durian smells lingering around the corridor. Initially my partner thought I was kidding until we swang open the main glass door and the fragrance rushed in to us.

Stairsway to Lobby

Serviette

Cold Chocolate was nothing special in particular. It was a standard glass of chocolate milk I felt with chocolate fudge at the bottom of the glass.

Cold Chocolate - $8

Out of the healthy juices selection, I had chosen the Power Detoxer which was recommended to dispel excess salts in the body. The drink is a combination of pineapple,, apple and watermelon.

Power Detoxer - $11

A creation in tribute to the nation's SG50 celebrations! The D24 Durian Ice Cream with Rainbow Bread was attention drawing with its 7 vibrant colors.

Durian Rainbow Ice Cream Cake - $11

This creation intends to instill a nostalgic feel in us to remind us of the olden Singapore days where vendors would sell ice cream in a folded multi-colored bread. Even though we may still get to see them around nowadays at parks or orchard, I believe soon such scenes will become history.

Side View

Durian Ice Cream was frozen and you could see the frost on the rainbow bread.

Another View of the Rainbow Ice Cream

The Durian Cappucino cake was another version of Tiramisu in my opinion just that the Mascapone cream cheese was replaced by the creamy durian. It was introduced into the menu since 2011 and still staying on the dessert menu. Containing a strong hit of espresso with its spongy and creamy richness from the durian filling, Espresso and Durian Lover, this is your take.

Durian Cappucino cake - $11

Finally, the legendary Durian Mousse Cake that kick start the Durian Fiesta Promotion since 1983. The pale yellow piece of cake was a real indulgent. Alternating between the layers of sponge cake and Durian Mousse I would say they complemented each other well. To add on, it has a strong hit of Durian Perfume and with its pulpy fills, it did make me drools once more. Strongly recommended for serious Durian Lover.

Durian Mousse Cake - $11

As Durian Buffet is only available during Lunch and Dinner timing over a limited period, it's very hard to get a seat if you walk in. Goodwood Park has a system that allows customer to reserve seats at the coffee lounge base on its availability and no. of pax which I find it very useful for patrons like us. To avoid any disappointment it is best to do a reservation if you want to dine in.

Rating: 4 / 5

Goodwood Park Hotel - Coffee Lounge
Location: Goodwood Park Hotel, 22 Scotts Road Singapore 228221

Supply & Demand

While discussing on the venue for our dinner gathering, I pointed out to Supply & Demand at Orchard but was being ignored as my buddies thought I was off the topic instead of suggesting a place for dinner. It was until i repeated quite a number of times then my group of friends realized that there was actually this place called "Supply & Demand" in Orchard Gateway.

Supply & Demand

It's easy to spot the place as it was within a short distance to Somerset MRT Station linking to the exit towards Orchard Gateway. Head up to the escalator into level two and you will find them at one corner.

When I was there initally, there wasn't any queue, and it was like minutes away when I went to pick my friend and crowd flew in.

The queue

Menu

Environment was bustling and packed. Interior had illustrated a semi industrial concept with open ceiling that reveal the height and pipping of the place. With its wooden chairs, tables as well as faux trees around, ambiance had changed towards a semi industrial and garden place, relaxing and somewhere where we can spend all night chilling without getting uncomfortable.

Interior

Though S & D (Supply & Demand) was supposed to be serving Italian Food. They have reserved a page on their menu for S.E.A (South East Asia) Flavours. Patrons get to enjoy familar snacks like Otak, Spring rolls and other dishes etc.

Recommended under the S.E.A section, we find no reasons not to order these drumlets. It comes in a pot of 5, these mouth watering crispy drumlets kick start our dinner. Served with addictive Homemade Spicy Dipping Sauce.

Crispy Chicken Drumlets - 12

Find these lip smackingly good starters as you enjoy these drumlets with a dab of chilli.

Drumlet

Aglio Olio was perfectly done with its pasta cooked to its Al Dente Texture, it had already won my stomach. There were no doubt on the quality of their incoming dishes. It was stronger in its Garlicky flavours so as to remove the seafood smell from the prawns. It wasn't too greasy and was done up with a classic dressing of Hot Olive Oil as well as Dried Chilli Pepper.

Aglio Olio - $15

What is Italian Cuisine noted for? It's advisable not to leave a Italian Restaurant without trying their Pizzas especially when S & D is famous for! The regular pizza size comes in 9" and you can opt for a larger size at 13". Having it thin crust, it was really hard to say no to them. Spreaded with Tomato sauce as its based with Mozzarella and Parama Ham, the pizza is topped with Rucola Salad (with rocket leaves) and shaved Parmesan cheese drizzled with olive oil. Crust was baked till a textural bite like what we got from biting a biscuit, this style is true to its namesake.

Prosciutto Di Parma 13" - $24

Main courses were prepared differently daily base on the decisions of the chef and came with 2 sides. Pork was rather fatty lending an unctuous essence to the dish overall. The tangy sauce gave a perfect marriage to the dish. Sides like grilled assorted vegetables include red bell pepper, squash, carrot and cucumber.

Asian Pork Rack - $30

Grilled to the perfect done-ness according to our preference, this juicy slab of Medium Well Done Angus Beef Ribeye left us with a satisfying meal. We had the plate polished clean even though the former main course was served first. The charred checked surface and its glistering layer under the light were simply irresistible. With juices yielding to knife's cut, it gave a ever-so-satisfying to cut into. Focusing into the middle cut, meat was pinkish without being bloody. I like it best when it was paired with the savoury Red-Wine Flavoured brown mushroom sauce. Thinking about it, it seems like another trip down to S & D is right on my list.

Austrialian Angus Beef Ribeye (250g) - $38

With a limited timing session due to that the table was reserved, though we still managed to enjoy our dinner and finished them up just in time, it was such a waste that we could not try out the Italian Desserts. Therefore, it is recommended to do reservations first to avoid disappointment. In my case, we had queued about 30 minutes before getting a seat for 4 pax. Food quality as well as services are definitely up to standard. However if you need some place to chit chat, S & D may not be appropriate as you may need to raise your voice against other tables and with a time limitation, its really hard.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Supply & Demand
Location: Orchard Gateway, 277 Orchard Road #02-13/14 Singapore 238858

Cake Avenue

Have you heard of Cake Avenue? If you have been thinking about customizing cake/s for special event, do try it out at Cake Avenue as they can almost customized any cake that you think of for any occasion.

Cake Avenue is located at a secluded corner of Lorong Kilat (Kilat Centre)  a few doors away from the Cafes like Carpenter & Cook, Nook, Udders etc.

Cake Avenue

Just earlier on this year, Cake Avenue had been closed about a month for renovation and upgrading. Started as a home-grown business online since 2000 and being known for their 3D Cakes all these years, they had extended the nature of their baking business into Bistro / Restaurant too with 50 seats.

Cake Avenue

Having visited one of the weekdays night, I would say that the restaurant was rather quiet, just only a 2-3 tables were occupied. It was a spacious cafe and they do also provide theme party celebrations with decors and dessert tables.

Interior

Simply love the creamy base for my pasta. Linguine Carbonara was topped with English Parsley, tasty bacons and mushrooms. Herbs and olive oil was used, lending good flavours to the cream base. Having said that, the cream was light and not too rich, what an enjoyment.

Linguine Carbonara - $14.90

Portion of Mushroom Baked Rice was standard. Taste of it wasn't too bad with loads of mixed mushroom in cream sauce and cheese.

Mushroom Baked Rice - $13.90

Being so long in the baking line, I have no doubts about their cake. Carrot cake was moist enough with hints of cinnamon and you can even get to bite on the nuts. There was a balance of sweet and lemon zest flavors with a bearable sweetness level. The carrot cake was coated with a layer of cream cheese topped with nuts and seeds.

Carrot Cake -

Having rated the best black forest cake I had in Singapore, this is nothing as compared to what I had in Stuttgart Black Forest Boutique S-Cafe. Layers of chocolate sponge with creams sandwich in between were soft. The chocolate flakes were kind of cling to the top layer of fresh cream. It tasted bitter initially but such taste was kind of neutralized when it was mixed with the cream.

Black Forest

Service was efficient and responsive with minimal waiting time. Staff on duty were also polite. I dont mind coming back again for some meals or even recommend them to someone who needs some customization of cakes for events.



Rating: 3 / 5

Cake Avenue
Location: Kilat Centre, 33 Lorong Kilat #01-01 Singapore 598132

Zhen Hao Wei

Zhen Hao Wei is another new find in Ayer Rajah Food Centre! The name when read in Mandarin may tells you that it's very yummy but in fact if you read into the chinese Characters, "Zhen" was actually referring to "Steam", the cooking method instead of "very". From this, the nature of the dishes had been well described by their business name. For healthier choice, Zhen Hao Wei may be an ideal option for weight watchers.

Zhen Hao Wei

Menu was mostly meat and every set meal comes with rice as well as a bowl of soup, ranges from $3.50 to $5.

Sweet taste of minced meat pancake with mustard green. Pancake was generally tender and filled with hints of sweet mustard green taste. As for the soup, ingredients used was generous with carrots, pork and raddish. The natural sweetness from the ingredients made the soup yummy. However, it was over peppery for me.

Mustard Green Minced Meat Pancake with Soup and Rice - $3.50

Minced Meat Pancake

Soup

Combination of 3 eggs in a dish was such an enjoyment. Steamed egg covered cut portions of both salted and century eggs. The distinct flavours of the egg was heavenly to me, simply love such combination. The thickness of the minced meat pancake may be a little bit thin for some but it's totally fine with me. As a minced meat pancake lover, I won't complain much about this. Moreover, it was not that oily.

Steam Egg, Salted Egg & Century Egg Minced Meat Pancake with Soup and Rice - $5

Close up on pancake

Soup Ingredients

Generously used of salted fish bits in the minced meat pancake, a steal for someone who enjoy salted fish.

Salted Fish with minced meat pancake - $5

With Soup, rice and a dish, I would say it complete a meal. Zhen Hao Wei is an additional choice in Ayer Rajah Food Centre, especially for Healthy goers who want to avoid oily or fried food.

Rating: 3 / 5

Zhen Hao Wei
Location: Ayer Rajah Food Centre, 503 West Coast Drive, Singapore 120503

Great Wall Cooked Food [Closed]

Just a door beside Ministry of Ribs, you get to enjoy typical bowl of handmade noodle from the coffeeshop house at Great Wall Cooked Food.

Great Wall Cooked Food

Interior of Great Wall Cooked Food is build up in a familar Singaporean style of coffeeshop with foldable tables and portable chairs.

Coffeeshop

Dishes Available

Texture of You Mian and Ban Mian was not too hard and not too soft, perhaps by cooking a while more will turn it soggy. The bite of the noodles were just right and they were toothsome. Pieces of lean meat were soft and ingredients like vegetables, egg and fried Ikan Billis were nicely executed. Surprisingly the soup stock went well and was sufficiently tasty.The accompanied chilli wasn't too spicy and came with a hint of tangy lime.

You Mian - $3

Ban Mian - $3

Besides going for their handmade noodles with minced pork, one can also go for their fried fish soup. Sharing similar soup base, the difference was not too great.  Fried fish were well battered and not too oily. A good alternative, if you are in the mood for fish.

Fried Fish Bee Hoon - $3.50

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Great Wall Cooked Food
Location: Blk 416, Pandan Gardens, #01-126 Singapore 600416

Platypus Family Kitchen

Having seen the word "Platypus" so frequently recently, it caught me by surprise during my routine groceries shopping in the mall. I saw some advertisement stating that Bukit Timah Plaza do have a "Platypus Place" and out of curiosity I took note of the unit number to check them up. It was located in a secluded corner where most of the shoppers like me would not even bother to travel there as most of the shops were closed. It seems like the target audience were more towards Family as the children's enrichment classes were located behind the Kitchen. Perhaps this is how their "Family" name came about.

A little background of Platypus: It is a Singapore based restaurant groups with 9 outlets in Singapore. They served modern cuisine with Italian and Mediterranean Influences.

Platypus Family Restaurant

The place was kind of quiet and you can see parents passing by their time there while waiting for their kids lessons to end.

Flashing Pager was implemented and there is no service charges required here.

Flashing Pager

We took up the promotion meal with 2 drinks, 2 main courses, 1 side and 1 soup of the day which costs $22.90.

Taste like home style black tea with a slice of lemon infusing the drink. The good part about the drink is that, we can adjust the sweetness level by pouring in the amount of sweetener ourselves.

Ice Lemon Tea

Pumpkin Soup with thicken cream was served. It was a good start to be filled with yummy soup that was not diluted. Sweetness was moderate and all were good for a start.

Pumpkin Soup

Main Course as Fish & Chips and the presentation was attention drawing especially in its color. Bright yellow, red tomatos and greens from Mesclun Salad were all pleasant for the eyes. Fish fillet was battered and fried to its crisp texture. Together with its thick cut fries and ample of Tar Tar Sauce with the zesty lemon juice, I would say this main course is comforting enough.

Fish & Chips

As it was quite hard on its outer crust, I would say I prefer Fish & Chips to be done more in the British Style as compared to this.

Battered Fish

I have never come across the word "Pom Pins" and so as for the sides, we had chosen this golden fried little balls (Pom Pins) over those boring fries. They were made up of mashed potato, similar to the ingredient of Tater Tots just that the latter is done up by grated potatoes. Came in bite sizes, these lovely deep fried balls were crispy in its outer and soft in its inner. It gave me a feeling that goes "Once you pop you cant stop".

Pom  Pins

The guy likes the style of Carbonara where it wasn't too creamy and sparingly used with every bit of it sticking closely to the strands of spaghetti. Parmesan cheese, bacon bits and chopped herbs were used to whip up such a dish. As for myself, I prefer my Carbonara to have a creamy pool of sauce within the plate.

Carbonara

With its promotional pricing, its all worthwhile and having said that with such serving at some restaurants chain, it could cost up to twice the amount. For those who want to enjoy their meal over a quiet place in Bukit Timah, you can head down to Platypus Family Kitchen.

Rating: 3.25 / 5

Platypus Family Kitchen
Location: Bukit Timah Plaza, 1 Jalan Anak Bukit #02-01B Singapore 588996
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